Meet Gulshan Kumar of Rangoli Grill in Westford

Gulshan, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today. Rangoli Grill opened its doors in October 2013, but the idea of this fast-casual restaurant had been percolating in our minds for several years. We started with a simple vision – to provide healthy, flavorful Indian food in an expedient and efficient manner.

Even though the US consumer today is embracing a healthier lifestyle, Indian food, which is inherently healthy if done right, remains a mystery for many people. We therefore wanted to introduce this cuisine in a way that removed the intimidation factor by presenting prepared items in plain view and using a well-understood assembly line format for them to customize their meals. And thus, Rangoli Grill was born.

The second part of the vision was to scale through a franchising model. Now that we have taken the necessary time to standardize the operations, streamline all processes, develop a strong training curriculum and documentation, and test the market, we are actively seeking like-minded franchisees.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you? We as founders, while having a professional background of many years including start-up experience in the high-tech sector, did not come from a retail food background. Rashmi is a career educator and Gulshan is a chemical engineer with 25 years of experience in IT and manufacturing. The challenge was to rapidly learn the nuances, including the regulatory requirements of this business, so we had to drink all this new knowledge from a fire hose. While this was a lot of hard work, it was also very exciting to learn about a new industry and a business-to-customer model. Additionally, regardless of the industry, there are fundamentals of running any business that are common. We applied our learnings and best practices about Good Manufacturing Practices, Supply Chain, Customer Service, Organizational Behavior, Finance and Accounting, Business Continuity, and Marketing to this business.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Rangoli Grill – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others. Rangoli Grill is a fast-casual Indian restaurant serving home-style dishes in a friendly, comfortable atmosphere. We make Rangoli Wraps, Rice Bowls, and Salad Bowls with clean and healthy ingredients, meeting a variety of dietary requirements – vegetarian, non-vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free. Our menu offers popular street foods – delicious vegetarian, savory snacks – in our Chaat Bar. Our Chicken Tikka Kebabs and Paneer Tikka Kebabs make delicious appetizers. Specialty beverages include Mango Lassi, Iced Chai Latte, and Masala Lemonade. All of the above is available for eat-in or take-out. We also offer an expanded menu for catering orders. Our homemade chutneys and marinades add a special touch to our various menu items just as the tandoor (clay oven) adds a distinct flavor to our cooked chicken, lamb, and paneer.

A testament to the quality and consistency of our prepared foods is the strategic relationship we enjoy with Whole Foods Market – a company that also emphasizes clean and healthy eating. Becoming their supplier required a rigorous evaluation of our operation by their auditors. These independent audits confirmed the strength of our operations and procedures, further demonstrating our readiness for franchising.

Keeping in mind our vision to grow through franchising, we have also spent a lot of effort in building our brand and a strong culture that is reflected in every Rangoli Grill team member. Our standardized procedures, recipe book, and training curriculum eliminate the need for an Indian chef – a commonplace requirement in ethnic restaurants – thus removing a big hurdle for franchisees.

Due to customer demand, we are on the verge of launching a subscription-based weekly meal offering for busy families. Stay tuned for more information on this.

We are very proud of all that we have accomplished since inception and are excited to expand beyond the corporate store.

– Develop the subscription-based catering service for clients looking for healthy Indian cuisine on a regular basis.

What’s your fondest childhood memory? The aroma of food has a way of taking all of us down memory lane. Every time we prepare certain dishes at Rangoli Grill, we can’t help but remember our own mothers who so lovingly prepared these very same dishes for us when we were growing up in India. Our street foods section, the Chaat Bar, conjures up for us the busy street vendors and small shops that would make delicious, mouth-watering, and finger-licking snacks and appetizers in the streets of New Delhi. Therefore, our food carries all those nostalgic but delightful memories.

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Local StoriesSeptember 14, 2018

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